


A Good Dog Deserves a Good Bone

by grus



Category: Hawkeye (Comics), Marvel, Marvel (Comics), Marvel 616
Genre: (past and non-graphic), Animal Abuse, Community: comicdrabbles, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-09
Updated: 2018-01-09
Packaged: 2019-03-02 17:49:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 478
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13323309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/grus/pseuds/grus
Summary: Clint ponders on his relationship with his new four-legged friend.





	A Good Dog Deserves a Good Bone

**Author's Note:**

> Written in August 2012 (right at the beginning of Fraction's Hawkeye run) for comicdrabbles @ lj (challenge #5 - beach).
> 
> Dedicated to my dog, Robin. My portrayal of Arrow/Lucky/Pizza Dog is somewhat based on her. 
> 
> Warning for: non-graphic mentions of past violence against an animal and the effects of it (nothing further than in canon).

He hadn't been planning on getting a dog... not with his lifestyle. Juggling “avenging”, managing a block of apartments - he bought the damn ruin after all and he can't let it go to complete waste, and taking care of Arrow (he still needs to think of a better name...) is more than he'd ever bargained for. Somehow, though, strangely enough, he feels more optimistic about life than in a long time.   
  
Maybe doing the “right thing” with your time and money for once did that to you.   
  
And then there's Arrow – not the obligation, but the friend – always as grateful as if it had been Clint who saved his life and not the other way round. Arrow wagging his tail in cheer, when his owner comes back to the, for once, not empty apartment. Arrow doing his best to learn how to handle life with one eye, and Clint reading up all the literature and asking vets for the best recovery methods (who could think you could do so much to help a half-blinded dog by playing with him the right way?). Arrow and Clint, two beaten up mutts, making each others' lives just a bit brighter...   
  
And then there are the people, finally free from the threat of eviction, surrounding them. And Arrow becoming the unofficial mascot and hero of the building, with kids taking him out on walks whenever Clint can't, and old ladies always making sure his diet doesn't consist only of pizza (which was totally unfair by the way – Clint feeds the dog better than himself!), added another layer to the sense of community they had had going on even before this.   
  
Clint's taken out of his reverie by Arrow nudging him on the side with his wet nose. Apparently the dog had had enough of idling on the blanket and catching the sun, and started getting impatient as he was always prone to, whenever immobile for a while.   
  
Clint laughs and tackles him to the sand. The animal starts fidgeting and rolling around in delight as Clint pats it lightly on the belly. Clint still remembers his surprise at discovering that Arrow preferred to be patted than petted or stroked. Well, he's no dog expert so most of Arrow's mannerisms, like his extremely resonant sneezes and wheezes, are new to him. Some of them are so gross they're actually cute in a weird way.   
  
They roll and run around, enjoying the salty breeze, not minding the sand getting everywhere (even Clint's short hair somehow became full of it), wetting their feet and paws respectively in the sea water... Until Clint's communicator sounds, and shit, that was a good vacation while it lasted. He packs up their things, puts on Arrow's leash and they both take one last longing look at the waves. 

Oh, well, they have many summers like this ahead of them..


End file.
